Kare Bears’ Korner

Calendar of Kare Bear events

Susan White

January 18 – Monthly Presentation at Eagle’s Nest

January 19 – Abrazo Tour

January 20 – AED/CPR class

January 31 – Blood Drive

February 4 – Desert Fest (look for our booth)

February 11- Health Fair

Kare Bears will be at DesertFest

Susan White

Kare Bears will be at this year’s Desert Fest on Saturday, February 4, 2017, from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

We will have information on our organization and be able to share with you the services we offer and volunteer opportunities.

We hope to see you there!

Wish to form a support group?

Susan White

PebbleCreek offers many amenities including support groups such as Breast Cancer and Dementia/Alzheimer’s.

With that, we understand that there may be others that want to start a support group. Some of those groups may not meet the minimum requirement of 15 members resulting in the inability to reserve a place to hold a meeting.

Whether it be a large group or a small group, Kare Bears may be able to assist you.

We want to support you in this effort!

Please call Rayma Scalzo at 935-1819 for additional information.

CPR/AED Class – January 20

Susan White

Have you always wanted to learn CPR, but never took the time—well here’s your opportunity to learn a lifesaving technique. The class will be held on Friday, January 20 from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. in the Tuscany Falls Ballroom, Room 1.

The CPR/AED defibrillator and resuscitation class is open to all employees and residents of PebbleCreek. The certified instructor does an excellent presentation with hands-on training in all equipment and technique.

The cost is $30 for residents and can be paid with cash or checks to AZ Pro CPR and First Aid LLC at the beginning of the class.

A sign-up sheet is available in the Kare Bears folder at the Community Information Mailbox across from the Eagle’s Nest Pro Shop.

Any questions, please call the Kare Bears house at 536-1200.

Thank you, donors

Susan White

The Kare Bears Board of Directors wishes to acknowledge various donations received in November from the following residents:

Non-campaign donations were received from Anna Marie Petrie, Linda Campanelli, Joan and Tony Suriano, William and Donna Duncan, Marilyn Kovach and Jon Jackson.

Equipment donations were received from Mark Clark, Karyn Swinford, Paul Lumos and Chris Warren.

The generosity and thoughtfulness of these residents and groups will enable Kare Bears to continue to serve the needs of our PebbleCreek residents.

Blood Drive – January 31

Susan White

As part of Kare Bears Health and Wellness effort, we are pleased to be offering a Blood Drive open to all residents on Tuesday, January 31 from 8:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. in the Palm Room at Eagle’s Nest.

The sign-up sheet is at the at the Eagle’s Nest Clubhouse across from the Pro Shop. Appointments are scheduled every 15 minutes starting at 8:30 a.m. until 12:15 p.m. Two appointments can be scheduled at the same time. If you would rather sign up at home on your computer, there is an instruction sheet explaining this process.

We want to encourage you to sign up on the computer to streamline the process on January 31.

To register online with United Blood Services, complete the Health History Questionnaire. The instructions, entitled “Streamline your next donation: Complete your health history online” are with the sign-up sheet or instructions can be found at www.UnitedBloodServices.org/HealthHIstory.html. Donors who complete the online health history questionnaire should print out the Fast Track Donation Ticket and bring it with you to the drive on January 31.

Blood Donation Reminders on the Day of the Drive:

1. Hydrate and eat a meal prior to your donation – even better, start hydrating the day before.

2. Bring ID with you (UBS Donor Card, driver’s license work well)

3. Make sure you are free of any cold or flu symptoms.

4. Have medication list available if needed.

5. Wear a top with loose fitting sleeves (preferably short sleeves) so that we can check blood pressure and locate the best vein to use to collect your blood.

6. Bring a list of all countries (and cities/areas you have visited—with dates) in the past 12 months and do the same for all European countries you have visited since 1980.

7. You must weigh at least 110 pounds.

8. Waiting period between donations is 56 days for whole blood, 112 for double red cell donations.

Did you know, you can save three lives just by donating your blood and it will only take a half hour out of your day. In addition, your body produces healthier red cells after a donation; red cells carry oxygen to your vital organs. The blood supply at valley hospitals is in need of constant replenishing. UBS-AZ is one of three approved blood banks that can send blood to our military overseas.

Also, if you are taking prescription medications, 95% of them are fine and will not prevent you from donating blood. Some examples of acceptable meds are: insulin, blood pressure, cholesterol, anti-depressants, thyroid, allergy and aspirin.

Many thanks for helping Kare Bears helping neighbors!

If you have any questions, please contact the Kare Bears House at 536-1200.

How to legally prepare for the future

Kare Bears would like to invite you to hear Attorney at Law, Lora Johnson, with Johnson and Associates at the Kare Bears monthly presentation on Wednesday, January 18 at 11:00 a.m. at the Eagle’s Nest Ballroom.

Lora G. Johnson was raised in Phoenix, Arizona. She earned a scholarship to Arizona State University, where she received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and graduated from the Barrett Honors College. She earned her Juris Doctorate from Arizona State University.

Lora says: “Regardless of your faith or personal beliefs, I believe that any moral person should feel some obligation to be responsible for himself or herself in order to make things easier for those that he or she loves. I believe that this obligation is a core responsibility. So as I was thinking about my family, I decided to think of the most important things I could do in pursuit of being responsible for myself in order to provide for my family, I settled on five items.”

1. It is my obligation to be knowledgeable about my long-term care options. I need to know how much long-term care insurance costs, if it is a viable option for me, if I can afford to privately fund my own long-term care needs and what my long-term care options are. As an elder law attorney I have very rarely seen a situation work out successfully where a parent moves in with a child and that is the long-term care plan. I need to understand how Medicaid (ALTCS) works and if it is for me.

2. It is my obligation to discuss my desires with those I love. Often this is not a comfortable discussion, but it only becomes more and more uncomfortable with time. It is always best when heard firsthand by those I love rather than a guessing game as to what other think I might have wanted and why.

3. It is my obligation to enjoy my life now and to model a good example for my family of how to care for myself and the importance in that. Be present. Enjoy. Be healthy.

4. It is my obligation to choose and designate a person to make decisions for me in the future. It is imperative that I have a say in who that person is and make sure that person is given that authority if something were to ever happen.

5. It is my obligation to make informed decisions and seek out proper advice. I owe my family the time and effort of gathering valuable professional advice in order to make informed decisions about my future so that they do not have a serious mess to clean up for me.

Lora focuses in the areas of estate planning, small business planning, Elder Law and Medicaid/Long Term Care planning. Mrs. Johnson opened her own practice in 2006. She has been practicing Elder Law since 2000.

This is a free event and open to all PebbleCreek residents.

Refreshments including coffee, water and lemonade will be available.

If questions, please call the Kare Bears house at 536-1200.